Improvement in writing-slates



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Letters Patent No. 99,661, dated February 8, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN WRITING-SLATES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JO N H. FRENCH, of the city 7 and county of Albany,ahd State of New York, have invented a new and improved School and Family-Slate, and accompanying cards oflessons for teaching writing, printing, arithmetic, pictnre-drawing,'ai1d map-drawing,ii1 addition to the other purposes for which schoolslates are commonly used; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being. had to the accompanying drawings,.forming part of this specification, in Which- Figures 1 and 2 represent face views of the slate.

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical section of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts.

This invention relates to a school-slate, and an accompanying set or sets of cards of lessons in writing, printing, arithmetic, picture-drawing, and map-drawing, the frame of the slate being so constructed as to admit of the insertion, upon one or both sides of the slate, of one or more cards at the same time, made of paper, card-board, or other suitable material, upon which are printed, drawn, painted, stamped, or p110- tographed, lessons or copies in writing, printing, arithmetic, picture-drawing, and map-drawing, either any one separately, or two or more, or all combined, the

cards being inserted into and held in the frame of the slatein such a manner'that the pupil is enabled to copy upon the slate, below or at the side of the cards, the lessons given on the cards, thus giving him a great variety of exercises in the most convenient form, and at moderate expense.

The operation .of copying the lessons in writing, printing, and picture-drawing, is materially facilitated by horizontal, perpendicular, and oblique lines, permanently pressed, drawn, marked, stamped, printed, ruled, or out upon apart or the whole of one or both surfaces of the slate, the lines not being so heavy or so deep as to impede or interfere with the free use of the pencil, and corresponding lines, printed, drawn, painted, stamped, or photographed, upon the lesson-cards, as

guide-lines, whereby the pupil is enabled to make his.

letters, figures, and pictures, of the proper proportionate heights, widths, and slope.

A represents a frame, made of wood, or any other suitable material, and' of any convenient size.

The construction of this frame diflers from that of the frame of the ordinary school-slate only in having slots, grooves, or channels, formed by making in the opposite pieces of the frame, a portion of the grooves a b, equal in extent, say, to the width of the accompanying lesson-cards to be used in connection with the slate, enough broaderthan the remainder of the grooves to admit of the insertion, on either or both sides of the slate, of one or more lesson-cards, B, the ends of the card or cards being inserted in the slots, grooves, channels, or openings a b, in the opposite pieces of the frame A, which then holds them in place upon the surface of the slate; or one edge of the card 01' cards being inserted in the groove 0 of one of the pieces 0 of the frame A, the groove in this case being broad enough to admit the edge of the slate, and also the edge of one or more cards, on eithcror both sides of the slate.

Upon a part or the whole of one or both surfacesof this slate, I produce horizontal, perpendicular, and

oblique lines, as follows:

The horizontal lines (Z c are parallel, and of the proper distances apart to give good proportions, in height, to the lessons in writing, printing, and picturedrawing.

The perpendicular lines f g are parallel and equidistant, and serve as guides to the pupil in properly spacing his printed letters and figures, in width, and to aid him in proportioning the width of his lessonsin rectangular drawing.

One set of the slope or oblique lines It i cross some of the horizontal lines, at any angle preferred, to correspond to the slope of the writing to be taught, and are of the proper distances apart to give good proportions to thespacing or width of the letters.

Two other sets of slope or oblique lines, at a uniform distance apart, and drawn at angles of sixty degrees from a perpendicular, cross each other, and form guidelines for lessons in isometric drawing.

The lesson-cards B are printed upon one or sides, and contain copies of letters, words, and fignres, for writing and printing, arithmetical exercises, and copies for lessons in' picture-drawing and mapdrawing.

Instead of increasing the width of any portion of the slots, grooves, or channels in the slate-frame in the manner already described, I may cut away the thickness of the slate on one or both edges any required amount, thus reducing the thickness of the slate at the edges, so as to make an opening or openings between the slate and the frame, into which opening or openings the side or ends of the lesson-cards may be inserted, substantially in the samemanner as they are inserted into thegrooves or slots in the frame, as hereinbefore described.

That I claim new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The frame A, containing slots in the inner edge of the opposite pieces, or a groove in the inner edge of one of the pieces, to admit of the insert-ion, on one or both sidesof the slate, of one, two, or more cards of card-board or other material, containing lessons in both 'writing, printing, arithmetic, picture-drawing, and containing lessons in writing, printing, arithmetic, picmap-drnwing, either any one separately, or two or ture drawing, and map-drawing, substantially as heremore, or all combined, substantially as and for the in described.

purposes described. JOHN H. FRENCH.

2. The cutting away of any portion of the thickness of the slate on the edge or edges, so as to admit 'Witnesses:

of the insertion, between the slate and the groove in DEWEY BRIMMER,

the frame, of the edge or edges of one or more cards STEPHEN R. GAY. 

